Terrible Things
by afoolforthg
Summary: Gale Hawthorne thinks that maybe, just maybe, he can survive his final reaping, but he doesn't. An AU in which Gale is reaped with a merchant girl. Can he survive the Hunger Games?
1. Chapter 1

The rays of the sun that just rose not very long ago strike my closed eyelids. Slowly, my eyes open as I scan my surroundings. The other side of my bed is empty, so I look across the room. My brothers and sister are all packed tight into the same bed as my mother. The bed next to mine, where Vick and Posy usually sleep, is empty, of course.

I don't blame my siblings for sleeping in my mother's bed. It's the day of the reaping, a scary event for almost everyone that has someone they love entered. It's the most frightening for Rory since it's his first reaping. He moves in closer to my mother but is still fast asleep.

Silently, I step out of bed, but cringe when the floors beneath me creak under my weight. I don't want to wake anyone up since it's probably pretty early in the morning. I make it a few steps before I hear light tapping behind me. Something pulls the back of my shirt, so I turn around and am met with the innocent eyes of my sister, Posy.

"Where're you going, Gale?" she asks. I press a finger to my mouth and point at the other sleeping members of our family.

"I'm going to get us dinner for tonight," I say in a low voice.

She nods and then looks around as if to make sure no one's listening. "It's reaping day," she whispers, as if it's a secret.

I ruffle her hair and smile. "Yes, it is, but you have nothing to worry about, Posy. You still have years before you'll even be in there once." She hugs me, her tiny arms wrapping around my legs because I'm so tall.

"But you're in there. And Rory," she mumbles, making a little sound like a whimper. I pick her up off the ground and hold her near my face so that I can look at her.

"I don't want you to worry about us. Got it?" I say. She nods, and I smile at her, trying to lighten her mood. She's just four years old and is already worried about one of her brothers dying. It's a sickening thing for me to deal with.

I carry her over to my mother's bed and place her on the ground. She climbs back in near my mother's legs and closes her eyes.

I change into my usual hunting gear and make my way out the door and through the complicated route I travel to get to the woods. I make sure that the fence isn't lit with electricity, which it isn't, of course. Silently, I walk to our usual hunting spot and retrieve the two knives I keep in a small opening of a tree.

Katniss isn't here yet. Maybe Prim's awake and Katniss has to calm her down, since it's Prim's first reaping. I'm lucky that Rory wasn't awake when I left. I'm not very good at comforting other people. Then again, Katniss might just be sleeping in. A lot of people do on reaping day.

A squirrel is on the ground near a tree not very far away from me. Silently, I pull one of my knives out from my back pocket and kneel on the grass. I just need it to look at me and…

The knife flies right into its eye.

I grin as I take the knife out of the squirrel's eye and skin it. After that, I trap a few more squirrels and other meat. I make sure to carefully take the skin off of each animal. I'd like to give my family a nice dinner, even if worse comes to worst, I won't be there to have it with them.

Katniss still doesn't arrive during this time, so I tuck my knives back into the spot in the tree, grab my game bag, and head out. Maybe the baker will give me something for a few squirrels. Bakery bread is something I can only afford on very rare occasions, and today might be one of them.

I have to check and see if the baker's wife is around. She's an impossible person to trade with, considering she hates what she calls "those Seam brats". I roll my eyes at the thought of her, but put on a pleasant expression when the baker opens the door. I offer him a few squirrels and even a turkey for a loaf of bread, but he dismisses them with a wave of his hand. He disappears inside the bakery for a few moment before tossing a loaf in my direction.

"I'll take a squirrel for it," he says.

I look down inside my game bag, then back up at him. "That's it?" I ask in disbelief. He nods, but I shake my head. "No. Take a couple of them. It doesn't matter to me."

"All I want is one," he says. "I refuse to take any more."

Shrugging, I give him the squirrel and he smiles slightly at me as he takes it from me. "Good luck today," he says.

"Thanks. Same for your sons," I respond. He nods and shuts the door.

I drop the loaf of bread into my bag. The rich smell of it is tempting, but I promise myself that I won't eat it without Katniss. Luckily, I don't need to wait long. A few minutes after I get back to the woods, she arrives. But beforehand, I stick an arrow from my bow through the bed. Might as well try to get a grin out of her today.

"Hey, Catnip," I greet her, and she smiles. I'd never dare to tell her this, but she looks so much…greater when she smiles. Younger. Like a weight's been lifted off of her shoulders.

I'm momentarily distracted by her presence. I blink a few times as I reach in my game bag and pull out the bakery bread. "Look what I shot," I say, glancing at the arrow I stuck through the loaf. She laughs and pulls it out of my hands, taking the arrow out of the middle of it. She lifts the bread to her nose, smelling the inside through the crack in the crust.

"Mm, still warm," she says. "What did it cost you?"

"Just a squirrel," I answer. "Think the old man was feeling sentimental this morning. Even wished me luck." She raises her eyebrows a little, examining the bread again.

"Well, we all feel a little closer today, don't we?" she says. I can't tell if she's being sarcastic or not. She doesn't roll her eyes like she usually does, so I'm guessing it's the latter. Either way, it's true. Reaping day has that effect on people.

Katniss pulls out a piece of cheese. "Prim left us a cheese." I smile, since goat cheese is something we don't have often. Katniss thinks it's best to sell the cheese rather than keep it for ourselves.

"Thank you, Prim," I say, glancing at the sky. "We'll have a real feast." Then I put on a fake smile and fall into the idiotic Capitol accent. "I almost forgot! Happy Hunger Games!" I pluck some blackberries from the bushes near us. "And may the odds-" I toss the berry toward Katniss, making sure it's high in the air.

She catches it in her mouth, like always. "-be _ever _in your favor!" she finishes, mimicking the Capitol citizens with as much enthusiasm as I did. It's something that Katniss and I joke about a lot, since it's easier that way. I'd rather laugh about it than be scared out of my mind by it. Anyway, it's hard to say something serious in a Capitol accent and not laugh at it.

I pull out my knife that I retrieved from the usual tree earlier and slice the bread. I glance at Katniss, but she's not looking at me. She's looking at the sky, kind of like she's thinking about something. I follow her gaze, just to see if something's in the sky, but there isn't anything.

She goes to collect more blackberries from the bushes while I spread the goat cheese on the bread. We sit down in a spot where no one can see us, but we can look out toward the valley. It's nice this way. Almost comforting, but I can't get my mind off of the reaping.

It's silent for a few moments, so I swallow, mustering up the guts to say what I want to say. I look at her, but once again, she's not looking at me. I focus my attention a patch of grass that seems taller than the rest.

"We could do it, you know," I say. It comes out in a quiet voice, but it wasn't necessarily supposed to. I hold my breath.

"What?" Katniss asks.

"Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it," I answer, but as soon as I say it, I know she'll never agree to it. The look on her face makes me feel as if I've done something wrong. "If we didn't have so many kids, of course," I add quickly.

If we did live in the woods, we'd have to take all of our family members with us, since they probably wouldn't be able to live without us. Our mothers. Prim. Rory, Vick, and Posy. The idea seems like a stupid thing to bring up now.

"I never want to have kids," she says.

"I might. If I didn't live here," I respond. It's true. But living in District 12, especially in the Seam…having kids seems almost cruel to me.

"But you do," she says, sounding annoyed.

"Forget it," I snap.

It's silent for a few moments after that. I'm worried I ruined our conversation, maybe even our friendship after suggesting an outrageous idea like I did.

"What do you want to do?" Katniss asks. She doesn't sound mad anymore, which is a good thing. Katniss isn't the best person to pick a fight with. In fact, neither of us are. Maybe it balances out.

"Let's fish at the lake. We can leave our poles and gather in the woods. Get something for tonight," I answer. If one of us even comes back tonight. I'm not sure about how many times Katniss's name is in there, but I can definitely say that the odds aren't in my favor, nor are they in hers.

We do good today. The predators mostly ignore us and, eventually, we have a dozen fish, a bag of greens, and a gallon of strawberries by late morning. We stop by the Hob, as usual, and do some trading there. Then we walk to the back door of the mayor's house. He has a liking for strawberries and can afford to buy them from us. His daughter, Madge, opens the door, wearing an expensive white dress.

"Pretty dress," I say, since it's true. Madge looks at me, probably unsure of whether or not I'm being sarcastic. She takes a deep breath and smiles a little.

"Well, if I end up going to the Capitol, I want to look nice, don't I?" Madge says. I look at her for a moment, hoping she's kidding. It takes all of my willpower not to scoff or even yell at her.

"You won't be going to the Capitol" is all I say, but I say it in a cold voice. She's lucky. She doesn't need to sign up for tesserae. She gets to live nicely while the rest of us nearly starve. I glance at the gold pin on her dress and roll my eyes. It's real gold, too. "What can you have? Five entries? I had six when I was just twelve years old," I say.

"That's not her fault," Katniss says.

"No, it's no one's fault. Just the way it is," I say. It's just the way the Capitol runs this horrible country. We're all just puppets, willing to just go along with whatever the Capitol forces us to do.

Madge, surely uncomfortable in this situation, says, "Good luck, Katniss" in a dismissive voice.

"You too," Katniss says, and Madge shuts the door.

Katniss and I walk in silence. I keep my mouth closed since there are people around us, but on the inside, I'm fuming. I'm not really mad at Madge. Almost envious of her, actually. I wonder what it's like to live in a world where you don't have to worry about starving to death. But I'm mad at the Capitol. Then again, when am I not?

Katniss and I divide what we caught and shot today, and then it's time for both of us to go back to our homes and get ready for the reaping.

"See you in the square," she says.

"Wear something pretty," I say tonelessly, and with that, she leaves. Now I just have to focus on surviving this reaping. This is my last year. One last year, then my name will be out of that reaping ball. But in reality, I won't be safe for years. I still have my siblings to worry about. The burden of the possibility of one of them going into the Hunger Games is a hard one to bear.


	2. Chapter 2

My family is awake when I get home and almost everyone is ready (or almost ready) for the reaping. My mother is tying a bow in Posy's hair, but looks up when she sees me.

"Gale, you're here. Finally. There's a tub of water waiting for you in the bathroom. Clean yourself up and come back here when you're done," she says. I nod and obey her instructions, heading off toward our bathroom. I think it's a waste of a room since it's a very rare occasion when we actually have running water, and even then, it only lasts for a few minutes. But my mother wants to keep it, just in case anything ever changes. Just in case we can finally get out of this horrible place we call home.

I scrub away the dirt and sweat that covers my body and even have enough time to wash my hair. My mother has laid out my clothes for today on my bed and I quickly change into them, leaving my hunting wear in a pile on the floor. I'll get them later.

I return to the kitchen where my mother is trying to button the top of Posy's dress, but Posy refuses, complaining that it's too tight. I smile at the sight, but my happy expression vanishes when I see Rory sitting at the table, twiddling his thumbs nervously. I sit down next to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey. I remember wearing this," I say, trying to lighten his anxiousness. "Seems like yesterday when it was my first reaping." It really doesn't feel that way, but it sounds comforting, so I say it anyway.

"What if my name gets picked? I-I can't go. I'll die," Rory says, sniffling. I bite my lip, unsure of what to say. There's a very, very low possibility that his name will be called. Very low. I can't assure him that it won't happen; what if it does and then he gets even more upset because I convinced him we was safe? The very thought of Rory being reaped makes my heart pound.

"Your name is hardly in there, Rory," I remind him. "The odds of you being reaped are very, very slim." He looks up at me and half smiles.

"So the odds are in my favor?" he asks.

I smile and pat his shoulder. "I'd say they are."

"Gale, Rory? Come on, we're leaving," my mother called from behind us. I give him one final pat of comfort and the two of us head out the door.

When we get to the square, I bring Rory with me to sign in. He jumps a little when his finger is pricked, but he soon recovers from it. He still looks nervous, but there's not much else that I can say to comfort him. It won't be okay. That's something I can't promise him: safety from the reaping.

I hardly notice when my finger is pricked. Then I walk toward the group of eighteen year olds and try to look for Katniss in the group of sixteen year olds, but I don't see her. I give up searching for her after a few minutes and focus on the temporary stage set up in front of me. Mayor Undersee and Effie Trinket sit in two chairs, but the third is empty. They look with concern at the empty seat, talking in low voices to one another.

The clock strikes two and the mayor steps up to the podium to read the history of Panem. It's sickening how he makes it sound like a good thing that the Capitol rules over us. Because, really, what's better than a government that forces its people to pick children to kill other children? We're just _so _lucky that we have the Capitol to watch over us.

I tune out most of what the mayor's saying, because I honestly couldn't care less. I've heard our history a million times before. It's nothing new. It's nothing important. All that matters to me is our future, one free of the Capitol's wrath…

My thoughts are interrupted by someone yelling something I can't even understand. I roll my eyes as District 12's only living victor, Haymitch Abernathy, stagger on the stage. He tries to give Effie a huge hug, but she shoos him away with a disgusted look on her face. Haymitch is way too drunk for his own good, but what else is new?

The mayor looks embarrassed, of course. District 12 is going to be the laughingstock of Panem, even though it probably is already. Mayor Undersee tries to turn this train wreck of a reaping around and introduces Effie Trinket.

She steps up to the podium with this overenthusiastic grin on her face. "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be _ever _in your favor!" She starts talking about how lucky she is to be here and what an honor it is, but she isn't fooling anyone. She hates being assigned to the worst district in Panem.

Her peppy voice is already giving me a headache, so I try to look for Katniss again. She catches my eye and I try to smile at her, to let her know that she'll be okay. But I can't promise that, of course. The thought of Katniss being reaped is so sickening, I have to turn away.

"Let's switch things up, shall we? Gentlemen first!" Effie Trinket says, clapping her hands together. She trots over to the reaping bowl for the boys and sticks her pale hand in.

_Not me. Not Rory. Not me. Not Rory. _The same two pleas run through my mind. I feel sick to my stomach as Effie picks a slip out of the bowl. I even cross my fingers that it's someone else, _please just be someone else…_

She opens the slip and steps in front of the microphone again. It's so silent in the square, no one even daring to move.

"Gale Hawthorne!" she calls out in her stupid Capitol accent.

It doesn't register for a second. There's a murmur among the crowd, but I can hardly hear it. People are looking at me, wondering why I'm just standing here, but I don't think I can move.

"Come on up, Gale Hawthorne!" Effie says. "Where are you?"

It's a rare emotion for me, but I feel it inside me-fear. I'm going to die. I'm going to walk up onto this stage, accepting my death sentence. My hands are shaking more than they should be as I walk up the steps to the stage. Effie wears a sickening smile on her face. This is _exciting_ to her. It's basically my worst nightmare, but she seems thrilled by it.

I keep my face clean of all emotions. No one can know that I'm scared and worried. People all over will be watching my face and will mark me as an easy target if I let my emotions show. Besides, I'm good at looking neutral. Isn't that what I've done my whole life?

"How exciting! Now it's time for the ladies!" Effie says. I take this time to glance around the crowd. My mother has her head in her hands, and Posy is clutching my mother's leg, looking like she's about to burst into tears. Vick seems to be the only one keeping it together. His arms are around Posy, one hand over her mouth to keep her from having an outburst.

Next, I find Rory. He's in the group of twelve year olds, of course. His mouth is open in surprise. He quickly puts his hand over his lips and closes his eyes.

I'm about to look for Katniss when Effie comes back to the microphone and opens up the slip of paper she holds in her hands. I don't even have time to wish for Katniss's safety. "And your female tribute…Valeria Marcellus!"

The name doesn't ring a bell. I'm wondering who it is when a girl steps out of the group of sixteen year olds. I'm guessing she's from the very small merchant class because of her blonde hair. I find Katniss, who's not very far away from this Valeria girl. Katniss's mouth is open and I know what she's debating. She wants to volunteer.

She catches my eye and I give her a small shake of my head. I try to give her a look that says _don't you dare_, because everything will be a million times worse if she volunteers. Going into the Hunger Games is my burden to bear, not hers. Besides, what would our families do? Starve, probably. I also can't even imagine what it would be like if it came down to the two of us if she volunteered. I wouldn't be able to kill her. I'd kill myself first.

Katniss gives me a barely-there nod. She understands. We have a pact. But still, she covers her mouth and closes her eyes. Just like Rory did.

Valeria steps on stage next to me and I see tears in her blue eyes. If she's from the merchant class, I can probably guarantee that she was never expecting this. I feel a little sympathy for her. At least she most likely knows that she'll die. I know I will, too. That's how these sick Games work.

"Let's have a round of applause for our tributes for the seventy fourth annual Hunger Games!" Effie exclaims, clapping her hands together. She looks surprised when no one claps along with her. Some are looking at us with pity, some with pain. A lot of people in District Twelve know who I am, or at least who my father was. Katniss looks right at me and presses the three middle fingers of her left hand to her lips, and then reaches that hand out to me. My family does the same thing, and suddenly everyone is saluting us.

_Thanks. Admiration. Goodbye to someone you love…_

My throat hurts and I feel like I can't get the air into my lungs quickly enough. But I'd die before I'd let the Capitol see me cry. No way I'm showing them that I'm scared. No way.

"Shake hands, you two!" Effie says, gesturing to Valeria and me. I turn toward her and shake her hand, noticing that her hand is trembling. The anthem starts to play, but Peacekeepers take us out and into the Justice Building as soon as it's over. I'm not ready for the next hour. How can I say goodbye to everyone I love before I'm ushered off to my death?


	3. Chapter 3

The Peacekeepers lead me into a classy room, one that seems unnatural here in District 12. Everything seems expensive and beautiful, and I can't help but wonder how much hunting it would take me just to get the small table next to the couch. It's sleek dark wood, an unfamiliar material to me. I'd have to do months of hunting just to be able to afford it.

"Wait here," one of the Peacekeepers snap, pushing me onto the couch. I try my best to glare at him as he leaves, but I can't muster up the anger. Right now, I only feel numb, unable to process the fact that I'm going to die, although it's evident that this pain-free time won't last long.

I sit in silence for a few minutes, the only sound in the room being my uncharacteristically heavy breathing. My mind starts to wonder what Valeria is doing right now. Have her visitors arrived yet? I scoff as I imagine the scene-a group of people all sobbing together, wondering how this could happen. Will my family be like that?

I don't have much time to think about that because the door opens and in walks my family, Posy bounding toward me first.

"Come here," I mumble, lifting her onto my lap. She's crying a lot, but I'm not sure if she really knows what exactly is going on. "It's okay, Posy. I'm okay." I can't spend too much time with her since we only have a few minutes, so I put her down and stand up.

"Oh, Gale," my mother whispers, looking teary eyed. She hugs me tightly and I'm really in danger of crying now, but I won't. I can't.

I move back from her and bend down to put my hands on the shoulders of Rory and Vick, who seem to be keeping it together. "All right, listen to me," I say, standing up straight again. "None of you take out tesserae. No matter what. And that goes for all three of you."

Posy sits on the couch and looks at me in wonder. "But you're coming back, Gale!" My mother makes some sort of noise like a sob and puts her head in her hands. I manage to smile at my little sister.

"I'll try, Posy," I tell her. She nods, relieved.

"Katniss will bring you food. Don't ask too much of her, and always give her something in return," I say, my stomach twisting at the mention of Katniss. She'll be here soon, after my family. But I can't focus on that now.

"Stay in school. And stay out of trouble," I add, trying to lighten the mood.

A few Peacekeepers come in the room. "Time's up," one of them says gruffly. "Let's go." They start pulling my family out the door, and they're trying to shout goodbye.

"Be careful!" I call to them, but the door closes. That's it. That's the last time I'll see my family.

I sink down onto the couch with my head in my hands. Pain is my visitor now. I have to admit that I'm scared-scared for myself, scared for the people I love. Whatever my death is like, I hope it'll be quick.

Someone stumbles into the room. I look up and am met with the concerned eyes of Katniss, her mouth slightly open, her face oddly pale.

I try to smile at her as I stand up. "Hey, Catnip," I greet her, trying to keep my voice from shaking. My arms open and she doesn't hesitate to go into them. She presses her forehead to my shoulder, not saying anything.

After a few seconds, she pulls back. Thankfully, she doesn't start crying. If she did, I'd probably cry with her.

"All right, Gale…" she says, looking determined. "You can do this. You're a hunter, the best one I know. Don't count yourself out." I nod as she takes a deep breath, biting her lip. I should speak now, tell her what I've been bottling up inside me, but I can't form the words.

"I'll be okay, Katniss" is what I say instead.

"I know," she replies. "Don't…Don't worry about your family. I'll take care of them. Make sure they don't starve. But you have to take care of yourself too, okay? Don't do anything stupid." I laugh a little at that, and she cracks a smile, but looks serious again.

"You know I won't. And you…you take care of yourself take care of yourself too, all right? Keep hunting, don't get caught." She knows that, of course, but I figure I should remind her. It hurts more than anything to say goodbye to her, and I know I need to tell her, since our time is severely limited…

"Come on," a Peacekeeper says, barging in. He takes Katniss by the arms and starts dragging her out the door, but she's fighting him off.

"Katniss, don't forget that I love you!" I finally call out. I only have enough time to catch the surprised reaction on her face before the door slams shut. I hope she knows. I hope she knows how much she means to me, how important she always will be to me. I hope she knows that I love her so much more than as a friend or a hunting partner.

I hope she doesn't forget me.

I sit down on the velvet couch again as my next visitor arrives. She is someone I wouldn't have expected in a million years-Madge Undersee, the mayor's daughter. She walks in, completely straight faced and calm, and sits down next to me. In her pale hand, she holds the gold pin she was wearing before.

"Look, they let you wear one thing from your district in the Games," Madge says, holding the pin out to me. "Take it. I want you to wear it."

I look down at the expensive thing, baffled. Why is she giving this to me? We don't even like each other. What's the motive behind it?

Madge closes her fingers around the pin, probably offended by my silence. "Here, I'll put it on for you," she says softly. Then she reaches up and pins the thing on my shirt, near my heart. "I know it's a little girly, but I want you to have it. It looks nice on you."

My eyes meet hers and I can see that there's no hate or irritation in her expression. She genuinely cares about me, wants me to come home.

"Thank you," I say in a quiet voice. "It's very nice."

Madge nods, looking distant. "Yes, it is. It belonged to someone in my family. But I don't have any use for it now."

I reach for the pin. "Are you sure? You can have it if you want. I don't need a district token." She shakes her head.

"No, keep it. Unless you don't want it," she says, managing a light laugh. I half smile back at her, thinking that Madge isn't so bad. Then the Peacekeepers are here, and Madge stands up.

"Good luck, Gale. I'll see you soon," she says, as if she's sure that I'll come back from the Games. Then she's gone.


End file.
